Officer Phil Smith Named As Evansville’s New Assistant Police Chief

Mayor Lloyd Winnecke and Chief of Police Billy Bolin are pleased to announce their choice to fill the upcoming vacancy for the Assistant Chief of Police position. The upcoming vacancy comes with the retirement of current Assistant Chief of Police, Chris Pugh. Officer Philip Smith will begin his tenure as Assistant Chief beginning January 1st, 2021.

After graduating from the University of Southern Indiana, Officer Smith worked on behalf of Evansville youth as an after-school programs coordinator and college readiness student support advisor for the EVSC. It was during his time with the EVSC, where Officer Smith began building relationships with several Evansville Police Officers. Ultimately, those relationships led to a life altering career change.

Officer Smith joined the Evansville Police Department on January 28, 2013 and began his training at the Southwest Indiana Law Enforcement Academy, where his peers selected him as the President of Class 13-12. After completing his training, Officer Smith served as a Motor Patrol Officer. In January of 2017, Officer Smith was chosen to serve as the EPD Special Projects Coordinator. In this role, Officer Smith has led the department’s social media presence and community engagement efforts. In addition to his regular duties, Officer Smith has played an active role in the EPD recruitment efforts by attending job fairs, hosting job shadow students, and participating in the applicant interview boards.

Officer Smith is a familiar face at community events such as Family Day in the Park, the Dust Bowl Basketball Tournament, the Evansville Rescue Mission Gobbler Gathering, Latino Advisory Board meetings, National Night Out, Fiesta Evansville, and the HOLA Latino Festival. In keeping with his EVSC roots, Officer Smith can be found at back-to-school supply giveaways and at the Glenwood Leadership Academy’s Affordable Christmas shop. Officer Smith has participated in several community conversations addressing education equity and equality. Officer Smith also helps coordinate, and coaches in the EPD Choose Not to Lose summer basketball league. In addition to organizing the EPD Coffee with a Cop sessions, Officer Smith is a national instructor for the Coffee with a Cop program.

Officer Smith is an Associate Member of the International Associations of Chiefs of Police. Officer Smith was a co-presenter on the topics of community collaboration and crisis management at the IACP Public Information Officer Mid-Year and IACP International Conferences in 2019, where he taught police chiefs from all over the world. Officer Smith currently serves as the IACP Public Information Section Midwest Regional Vice Chairman which requires him to oversee partnerships with agencies in seven states to help establish best policies and practices for agency transparency and community engagement.

Officer Smith is a Board Member for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Indiana, Leadership Everyone, and the Youth Care Center. He previously served on the Board for the EPD Foundation and was the Public Relations Co-Chair for the Mickey’s Kingdom Community Playground project. Officer Smith is a founding member of the Cops Connecting with Kids program and currently serves as the President of their Board of Directors.

Officer Smith has been recognized for his work in the community, both locally and nationally. He is the recipient of the 2019 Leadership Everyone Individual Achievement Award and the 2019 Human Relations Commission Sue Woodson Community Relations Award. In November, Officer Smith accepted the 2020 United States Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Policing in the category of Innovations in Community Policing.

Soon to be Assistant Chief of Police Philip Smith resides in Evansville with his wife and two kids.

[Information courtesy of Evansville Police Department]